Existing cargo stowage compartments on mobile platforms, for example on commercial passenger aircraft, make use of systems for controlling the temperature within the cargo stowage compartment. Such mobile platforms also make use of fire detection/suppression systems for detecting and suppressing any fires that may develop within the cargo stowage compartment. Temperature control and ventilation of the cargo stowage compartment is particularly important since the cargo stowage compartment is often used for temporarily holding live animals and perishables. Thus, the temperature and quality of air within the cargo stowage compartment of a mobile platform, and particularly of commercial passenger aircraft, is an important consideration.
Traditional cargo stowage compartments in various forms of mobile platforms, and particularly in commercial passenger aircraft, have utilized a forced air approach for ventilating the cargo stowage compartment. The forced air approach involves recirculating cargo compartment air, or passenger cabin return air, or equipment cooling exhaust air, into the cargo compartment through a network of ducting.
Traditional mobile platform cargo fire protection systems, and particularly those employed with commercial passenger aircraft, consist of a fire detection system and a fire suppression system using a fire suppression substance. In some applications a Halon gas is used as the fire suppression agent. A typical fire detection system utilizes photoelectric detection technology and may include a tubing network or a number of stand alone detectors to sample air from various locations within the cargo stowage compartment for the presence of smoke. The fire detection system provides the appropriate signal for the cargo air systems and cargo fire suppression system to work together in the event of a fire within the cargo stowage compartment. The fire suppression system typically uses a Halon agent to extinguish and suppress any fires. The fire suppression system typically also includes a network of dedicated tubing to distribute the fire suppression agent to various locations within the cargo stowage compartment.
These subsystems are traditionally developed and designed independently, even though they must work together in all operating conditions, and particularly so during a fire event. This independent approach requires separate and significant efforts to develop/integrate/coordinate into the mobile platform the numerous and/or similar interfaces between the ventilator and fire detection/suppression systems. Significant effort and expense is also often required to interface these systems with other subsystems of the mobile platform, and also specifically to the cargo compartment structure. The design of present day ventilation and fire detection/suppression subsystems often makes it difficult for each subsystem to meet its performance efficiently. For example, airflow patterns produced by a heating system may in fact work to hinder the detection of a fire within the cargo stowage compartment. The independent design and implementation of fire detection/suppression and ventilation subsystems may also complicate the integration of such subsystems and make optimizing the performance of each subsystem difficult.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an integrated environmental control system for a cargo stowage compartment of a mobile platform that enables ventilation and fire detection/suppression operations to be integrated via a single system. It would further be highly desirable to provide such a system and method in which integration of fire detection/suppression and ventilation subsystems can be accomplished with little or no additional duct work being required in the cargo stowage compartment.